Process of making acceptable mozzarella cheese without aging

ABSTRACT

In the manufacture of mozzarella cheese, aging can be dispensed with if the process is controlled to yield a combined moisture and wet milkfat content of at least about 70 weight percent, and the cheese will provide acceptable bake performance under typical cooking conditions used in the pizza industry today. Within about 48 hours after brining, the cheese should either be used or frozen. This discovery saves at least seven days of aging and permits the use of a continuous process of making mozzarella, which, from pasteurization to loading of the frozen product on the truck, can be performed in as little time as eight hours. In the continuous process, the hot stretched cheese from the kneading machine is extruded directly into cold brine. After the cheese has cooled sufficiently, it can be comminuted and frozen by independent quick freezing, preferably in a fluidized bed freezer. Salt preferably is mixed into the cheese during the kneading step.

I. FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a continuous process of manufacturing,comminuting, and packaging varieties of mozzarella cheese, and moreparticularly to a process in which the cheese produced is functional foruse without being subjected to further aging or treatment. The presentinvention also relates to the composition of the mozzarella cheeseproduced using this process. The milkfat, protein, and moisturecomponents are adjusted in a manner to achieve the desired performancecharacteristics.

II. BACKGROUND

The dairy industry, and more particularly the cheese industry, for manyyears has attempted to reduce the length of time required during themanufacturing process to obtain the desired and expected performancecharacteristics of a cheese. The performance characteristics mostcommonly associated with mozzarella cheese varieties are those exhibitedwhen cooking these varieties on a pizza. These include meltcharacteristics as to the degree of blistering, meltdown, stretch, andtenderness. The capability of shortening the aging process, oreliminating it altogether, has significant economic benefits directlyassociated with the costs of aging cheese.

Mozzarella variety cheeses are made by a process involving the followingsteps:

a) pasteurizing cow's milk having a fat content in the range of about1.5 to 3.5 weight percent (in some countries water buffalo milk isused);

b) fermenting the milk with one or more lactic acid-producing bacteriato obtain a cheese milk;

c) coagulating the cheese milk to obtain a coagulum comprised of curdand whey;

d) cutting the coagulum and draining the whey therefrom, thereby leavinga cheese curd;

e) heating, kneading, and stretching the cheese curd until it is ahomogeneous, fibrous mass having a moisture content in the range ofabout 45 to 60 weight percent and a milkfat content of at least about 30weight percent (dried solids basis);

f) placing the mass in a bath of cold brine and leaving it there longenough to achieve cooling and salt penetration: and

g) removing the cooled cheese from the brine.

After the brining step the resultant unripened mozzarella cheesetraditionally has been aged at about 35° to 45° F. for approximatelyseven to 21 days, to develop characteristic taste and texture, as wellas acceptable baking characteristics. (The aging process also issometimes referred to as "ripening," "curing," or "maturation.") All ofthe major components of cheese, i.e., carbohydrates, protein, and fat,are subject to change during aging. Through a complex variety ofmetabolic processes, e.g., enzymatic lipolysis and proteolysis, theseprincipal components are metabolized to lactic acid, peptides, aminoacids, and fatty acids.

After aging, the mozzarella cheese often is comminuted and frozen, so asto halt the ripening processes, and then shipped in refrigeratedcontainers. It may be frozen in block form as well, but seldom, if ever,is.

The baking characteristics of mozzarella cheese are very important. Mostmozzarella cheese is used to make pizzas. This entails spreading tomatosauce and the cheese (in comminuted form) on a base of pizza crust andthen baking the resultant pizza in an oven maintained at a temperaturein the range of about 400° to 1000° F., often within the range of about450° to 650° or 850° F. As is well known, a great variety of other foodmaterials, such as pepperoni slices, mushroom slices, ground beef,sausage, and pineapple chunks, may be used as toppings on the pizza aswell. As the cheese melts, the cheese components begin to fluidize,which can result in water evaporation, release of oil, and blistering.What is desirable is that the cheese thoroughly melt before the crust isoverbaked. What is undesirable is that the cheese form many largeblisters as it melts. The blisters, which are formed by the protein, canburn, creating dark hard scabs that can detract from the appearance,taste, and mouth feel of the pizza. To be satisfactory, the cheese needsto melt with minimal blistering, while the crust bakes.

If not subjected to an aging step, mozzarella variety cheeses havetended to blister significantly when used to make baked pizzas. Thehigher the oven temperature, the greater the risk of blistering.

Ripening of mozzarella variety cheeses requires considerable time,space, and energy, however, which adds to the cost of the finishedproduct. The same is true of other varieties of cheese as well, to agreater or lesser extent. For this reason many approaches have beentried in an attempt to find ways to accelerate the ripening process forseveral types of cheese.

Lederer, in 1953, disclosed that the aging time for American cheddarcheese can be shortened by quick freezing the cheese when green, holdingit frozen for 60 to 180 minutes, and then transferring the cheese to aconventional aging room maintained at 45° to 60° F. Good body, texture,and flavor is achieved after only nine days of aging, as contrasted withat least six weeks by the conventional process. (Lederer, U.S. Pat. No.2,816,036, "Cheese Manufacture," filed May 1, 1953, issued Dec. 10,1957.)

Freeman, in 1959, disclosed that the aging of cheddar cheese can beaccelerated by using a mixture of cultures and a higher temperature (60°F.) for the first four weeks. (Freeman, "Accelerating the Aging Processin Cheddar Cheese," Kentucky Agric. Experiment Station, U. Kentucky,Bulletin 666 (June 1959).)

Kristofferson, in 1967, taught that the addition of reduced glutathioneand porcine lipase to a slurry of the cheese will accelerate theripening of cheddar when making a cheese paste. (Kristofferson, et al."Cheddar Cheese Flavor. IV. Directed and Accelerated Ripening Process,"J. Dairy Sci. Vol. 50, No. 3, 292-297 (1967).)

Singh, in 1969, disclosed that the aging of cheddar cheese curd while inslurry form can be accelerated by the addition of sodium citrate and acombination of vitamins and minerals. (Singh, et al., "Factors AffectingFlavor Development in Cheddar Cheese Slurries," J. of Dairy Sci. Vol.53, No. 5, 533-536 (1969).)

Prochazka, in 1971, disclosed the addition of sodium citrate to"mozzarella-type" cheeses to shorten the ripening period by at leastone-third. (Czechoslovak Patent No. 141,283, "Process for the Productionof Cheeses with Accelerated Ripening," May 15, 1971.)

Sullivan et al., in 1973, disclosed that American cheese and Swisscheese can be ripened two to five times faster by addingadenosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphate to the cheese curd. (Sullivan etal., U.S. Pat. No. 3,859,446, "Method for Rapid Curing of Cheese," filedSep. 26, 1973, issued Jan. 7, 1975.)

Sutherland, in 1975, taught that the time required to ripen cheddarcheese slurries can be shortened by adjusting a variety of differentconditions, including headspace oxygen in the aging vessel. (Sutherland,"Rapidly Ripening Cheese Curd Slurries in Processed Cheese Manufacture,"the Australian J. of Dairy Tech., Vol. 30, 138-142 (1975).)

Shehata et al., in 1977, taught that the addition of sodium citrate toraw water buffalo milk accelerates lipolysis and proteolysis of Rascheese prepared therefrom (Shehata et al., "Effect of Adding SodiumCitrate to Buffaloes' Milk on Chemical and Organoleptic Properties ofRas Cheese," Dairy Sci. Abstracts, Vol. 41, No. 9, 550 (1979).)

Lee, in 1979, proposed injecting a pregastric esterase solution intomozzarella cheese to shorten the aging process. (Lee, Hyong Joo,"Acceleration of Cheese Ripening High Pressure Injection and Diffusionof Curing Components in Italian-Type Cheese," Ph.D. Thesis, U.Wisconsin-Madison, 1979.) Lee's thesis includes a literature review onthe acceleration of cheese ripening. Id., 2-45. He reports that theripening process, like most chemical reactions, is accelerated at highertemperatures, but in many cases undesirable reactions also occur,yielding off-flavored products. Id., at 17.

Abdel Baky, in 1982, reported the results of experiments demonstratingthat the addition of sodium citrate, proteinase, and lipase to a Rascheese slurry can shorten the curing time from two months to seven days.(Abdel Baky, et al., "Ripening Changes in Cephalotyre `Ras` CheeseSlurries," J. Dairy Research, Vol. 49, 337-341 (1982).)

Law, in 1987, wrote that the ripening of various cheeses can beaccelerated by the addition of exogenous proteolytic enzymes. (Law,Barry A., "Proteolysis in Relation to Normal and Accelerated CheeseRipening," Cheese: Chemistry, Physics and Microbiology (Elsevier AppliedScience, New York, N.Y. 1987, Edited by P. F. Fox, vol. 1, ch. 10,365-392.) (Adding lipases or esterases has been common practice inItalian-type cheese manufacture since the 1950's.)

With regard to all of these prior art processes, however, some amount ofaging has been indicated as being necessary.

III. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It has now been discovered that varieties of mozzarella cheeseexhibiting desired performance characteristics can be produced by aprocess which eliminates the requirement for a separrate aging step. Inthe process of the present invention the conventional steps of producinga mozzarella variety cheese are employed, but the ingredients andconditions are controlled so that the cheese obtained from the briningstep has a combined moisture and wet milkfat content of at least about70 weight percent. Means by which the moisture and milkfat contents ofthe final cheese can be controlled are known in the mozzarella-makingart. Thus, for example, the milkfat content can be controlled at thepoint where the excess fat in the milk is removed in a separator. Thisis just prior to pasteurization. The moisture content can be controlled,for example, by controlling the amount of acid production duringfermentation, in addition to adjusting the temperature and length of thecooking step.

Mozzarella cheeses on the market today most often have a combinedmoisture and wet milkfat content below 70 percent, e.g., in the range ofabout 65 to 69.5 percent. Also, of course, they are aged. Typicalcomposition examples for the four most common varieties on the market atthis time are as follows:

    ______________________________________                                                                Wt. %      Wt. %                                                   Wt. %      Milkfat,   Milkfat,                                   Variety.sup.1)                                                                             Moisture.sup.2)                                                                          Wet Basis.sup.3)                                                                         FDB.sup.4)                                 ______________________________________                                        Mozzarella   52 or more 21.6 or more                                                                             45 or more                                 Low-moisture moz-                                                                          46         24.8       46                                         zarella                                                                       Part-skim mozzarella                                                                       52.5       16.6       35                                         Low-moisture part-                                                                         50         18.25      36.5                                       skim mozzarella                                                               ______________________________________                                         .sup.1) As defined by the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter 21,       Sections 133.155 through 133.158.                                             .sup.2) Bound plus free wateri.e., percent of weight lost when dried          overnight in a 200° C. oven.                                           .sup.3) Percent based on weight of entire cheese, not just solids.            .sup.4) "Fat on Dry Basispercent based on weight of dried solids in           cheese.                                                                  

We have found that the mozzarella cheese produced by the present processcan be used immediately to make satisfactory pizzas. No aging isrequired; in fact it may not even be desirable. The unripened cheesealready has the desired performance characteristics for use in preparingbaked foods. It can be frozen immediately and shipped. It is believedthat, if kept frozen, the cheese will retain satisfactory performancecharacteristics for as long as 12 months.

The cheese should be used or frozen within 48 hours after completion ofthe brining step. If it is not used or frozen within that time, somecontrol over its melt performance properties will be lost. The cheesethen will tend to burn and blister when baked, unless it is firstallowed "to age out"--i.e., is left unused for at least about five moredays. In a particularly advantageous embodiment, the present process canbe performed in a continuous manner, with the cheese being comminutedand frozen within only two hours after being brined.

The cheese may be formed into loaves and frozen in that shape, ifdesired; but preferably it will be comminuted before freezing. If it isfrozen in loaf form, then from the pasteurization of the milk to theloading of boxed loaves of the frozen, finished cheese on trucks, theentire process can be performed in as little as 36 hours. If the cheeseis diced or shredded before freezing, and the freezing is accomplishedby independent quick freezing, then the entire process, frompasteurization to shipping, can be completed in even less time, e.g., inas little as about eight hours. In contrast thereto, prior art methodshave required an additional 7 to 21 days of aging to achieve the desiredperformance characteristics.

The mozzarella cheese produced by the present process can be usedimmediately by the pizzerias to which it is shipped. No holding time isrequired. If it has been independently quick frozen by the methoddisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,815 to Kielsmeier et al., it does noteven have to be thawed first; it can be put in the oven in the frozenstate. Under typical cooking conditions used in the pizza industrytoday, the cheese of the present invention performs as well or better onpizzas as mozzarella having less than 70 percent combined moisture andwet milkfat that has been aged the customary 7 to 21 days.

If a mozzarella cheese having significantly less than 70 percentcombined moisture and milkfat was immediately frozen and shipped afterbeing removed from the brine, it likely would have to be thawed and heldin a cooler at about 35° to 45° F. for seven days or more before itcould be used on a pizza and produce satisfactory melt performance undertypical cooking conditions used in the pizza industry today. Such cheeseeither has to be aged for at least one week before it is frozen, or, ifit is immediately frozen, it has to be thawed and then aged for at leasta week before it can be satisfactorily used in baking pizzas undertypical conditions used in the industry today. It is conceivable thatunaged, under 70% cheese could be made to exhibit acceptable meltproperties under limited, atypical cooking conditions, but what isneeded is a mozzarella that pizzerias can use under standard conditionsof baking time and temperature. The cheese produced by the process ofthe present invention is such a cheese, even though it is producedwithout aging.

IV. DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The file of this patent contains at least one drawing executed in color.Copies of this patent with color drawings will be provided by the Patentand Trademark Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee.

FIG. 1 is a schematic overhead view of part of a production lineemploying the process of the present invention in a continuous manner.

FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 are photographs of pizzas baked using anunsatisfactory unaged mozzarella (FIG. 2), a conventional agedmozzarella (FIG. 3), and an unaged mozzarella prepared by the process ofthe present invention (FIG. 4).

FIG. 5 is a graph showing the relationship combined moisture and milkfatcontent to apparent heat capacity of cheese prepared by the process ofthe present invention. FIG. 6 is a graph showing the relationship ofcombined moisture and milkfat content of unaged mozzarella cheese to itsmelt performance.

V. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

The pizza industry most commonly uses mozzarella cheese as one of theprimary components of a pizza. The various styles of pizzas (i.e., thincrust, thick crust, etc.), as well as the type of oven used, willsignificantly influence the performance, or melt characteristics, of themozzarella cheese. Additionally the amount of time for which a pizza iscooked (and the temperature at which it is cooked), will have similarinfluences on the performance of the cheese. Thus, when cookingmozzarella cheese on a pizza, the amount of energy available to obtainthe desired melt characteristics is dictated, and limited, by thesecooking conditions.

Performance, specifically melt characteristics such as blistering,meltdown, and stretch, are important to the pizza maker, because it isthese characteristics which are most apparent to the end consumer andwhich contribute to the overall enjoyment of eating pizza. As mentionedabove, it has been generally accepted that to obtain such meltcharacteristics, mozzarella cheese, regardless of its composition,requires aging for seven days or more. The present invention provides aprocess which eliminates the requirement of aging, or any furthertreatment, of the mozzarella cheese, yet achieves similar meltcharacteristics to those of prior art cheese that has been aged.

There are three primary components of mozzarella cheese which influencemelt characteristics: moisture, milkfat, and protein. It has beenunderstood that all of these components, individually as well as incombination, play a role in the performance characteristics ofmozzarella cheese. Of the three it is the protein, and, morespecifically, the complexity of the protein structure, which is theprimary limiting factor as regards the final melt characteristicsobtained. The protein structure, more than any other component ofcheese, requires the highest degree of heat (i.e., caloric energy) tocause it to become fluid, or melted, when cooked on a pizza. In becomingfluid, the long, string-like protein molecules must unravel. Thisunraveling typically requires that the cheese be heated to a temperaturein the range of about 150° to 200° F. This temperature range alsocoincides with temperatures most commonly achieved when cooking a pizza.Only with this unraveling of the protein structure can the desired meltcharacteristics be achieved.

It is well understood that temperature is a measurement of the averagekinetic energy released by a substance; and therefore the temperature ofa molten substance is a function of the amount of energy absorbed, themelting point of the substance, and the resultant energy released. Thus,to obtain the necessary temperature to unravel and melt a cheese'sprotein structure, a certain amount of energy is required to be absorbedby the cheese. Once melting is complete, energy will be released and thetemperature of the cheese will rise more easily. In cooking a pizza,other components of the pizza (i.e., the dough, the sauce, etc.)additionally require energy to ensure that their desired bakedcharacteristics are obtained as well. The amount of energy available, aswell as the transfer of energy, is limited, based on the particularstyle of pizza and the particular cooking condition (i.e., oven time andtemperature). The pizza cannot be left in the oven for an extendedperiod of time to cook the cheese, or else the crust and otheringredients will deteriorate.

Until now it has been believed that the energy available under thecooking conditions commonly used in the pizza industry is not sufficientto fluidize the complex protein structure associated with mozzarellacheese unless the cheese has been aged. Aging partially breaks down theprotein through proteolysis. The smaller protein units (peptides), whichare less complex in structure, do not require as much energy to unravel.

Secondary effects aging has on the performance characteristics ofmozzarella cheese are equilibration of salt within the cheese and achanging of the ratio of free water to bound water in the cheese. By"bound water" is meant water that is chemically or physically bound toother components in the cheese. The rest is "free water." Both of thesefactors have an influence on the final melt performance of mozzarellacheese. Blistering of cheese on a baked pizza is believed to be causedby a burning or drying out of the protein present. Thus, when cookingcheese on a pizza it is believed to be critical that to avoid excessiveblistering the protein structure retain moisture as it melts. However,if there is too much free water in the cheese, such water will beflashed off during the cooking process, resulting in a high degree ofblistering. On the other hand, cheese which has a significant amount ofbound water, most commonly associated with aging of the cheese, willhave a tendency not to blister as much, as this bound water will notflash off as readily, thus keeping the protein structure moist.

In the process and the resultant product described by this invention, itis believed that the excessive flashing off or free water is avoided bythe following factors:

1) Incorporation of salt during the mixing/molding step. Salt has theability to "bind" water, thus retaining in the cheese some of the freewater which otherwise might be flashed off during cooking.

2) By having the proper moisture and milkfat contents, and thusobtaining a high enough heat capacity, the protein and milkfat becomefluid early enough in the cooking process to retain the free waterbefore it can be flashed off.

We also have discovered that mozzarella cheese produced by the presentprocess, after being cooled in the brine, can be held for up to 48 hoursprior to being comminuted and packaged, and still it will yield desiredperformance characteristics. The preferred time of comminuting is withintwo hours after brining. This optimizes the cheese's performancecharacteristics, while maintaining the production efficienciesassociated with a continuous process. Holding the cheese in an unfrozenstate beyond about 48 hours can result in the product becoming too softto properly comminute into cheese granules. This appears to beparticularly the case if the cheese has a moisture content in the rangeof about 52 to 60 weight percent and a wet milkfat content in the rangeof about 20 to 30 weight percent.

We have also observed that product which is held beyond 48 hours beforebeing frozen tends to require traditional aging (generally a total of7-21 days) to obtain the desired melt characteristics.

Without wishing to be bound by theory, we believe that the relationshipbetween the moisture content and the state of the protein is such thatwithin the first 48 hours after completion of the brining, the desiredmelt characteristics can be achieved, but that after this time there isa shift in this relationship, such that only by aging the cheese for aweek or more can the desired melt performance be obtained. One cangenerally arrest and preserve the desired properties in the unagedcheese by freezing it within the 48 hour period. Slow or fast freezingmethods can be used. Preferably, the cheese will be frozen to a coretemperature of about 25° F. or lower.

When used to make pizzas, the cheese prepared by the process of thepresent invention, together with tomato sauce (other ingredients areoptional), can be spread on a pizza crust that is either frozen orunfrozen. Also, the crust can be either unbaked, par baked, or fullybaked. The cheese generally can be thawed as far ahead as 14 days priorto being placed in the oven. As mentioned above, however, it need not bethawed long prior to baking. It will perform well if thawed only one ortwo days prior to use. Moreover, if the cheese has been frozen by theIQF method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,815, it can be placed in theoven without any pre-thawing, and still it will exhibit the desiredbaking characteristics.

In the present process the ingredients and conditions generally arecontrolled to yield a cheese moisture content in the range of about 50to 60 weight percent and a wet milkfat content in the range of about 16to 30 weight percent. The preferred composition to which the mozzarellacheese is held in the present process is a moisture content of at least52 percent and a wet milkfat content of at least 18 percent

As mentioned above, one of the purposes aging serves is to allow salt(sodium chloride) diffusion from the outer crust into the center ofmozzarella loaves, thereby equilibrating the salt concentration in thecheese. Since aging is omitted in the present process, it is preferredto mix into the fresh cheese curd about 0.5 to 1.5 percent salt (basedon the weight of the curd) during the heating, kneading, and stretchingoperation. Most preferably at least 0.8 weight percent salt will beadded.

After the cheese curd is heated, kneaded, and stretched into ahomogeneous, fibrous mass, it is brined. The mass will typically be at atemperature of about 125°-155° F. The hot mass can be extruded directlyinto a brine tank, or it can be hand-molded into loaves (e.g., measuringabout 31/2" by 7" by 22") and chilled in cold water first. Whenhand-molded, the mass is placed in stainless steel molds which areimmersed in cold water (about 35° to 50° F.) for about 20 to 30 minutes.This cools the cheese enough to allow it to hold its shape. Then it isremoved from the molds and placed in a brine tank typically having atemperature of about 35°-55° F. and a salinity of about 50-98 wt. %.

Hand molding is labor intensive, however, and extrusion of a ribbon ofthe hot fibrous mass directly into a "super cold" brine solution ispreferred. The ribbon preferably is about 6 to 8 inches wide and 3 to 4inches thick. The super cold brine will typically be at a temperature inthe range of about 0° to 25° F. and will have a salinity of about 30-60wt. %. The cheese is rapidly chilled in the super cold brine so as toset it quickly. If not adequately set before the ribbon is cut, thechunks of cheese will tend to deform and lose their uniform shape. Thecheese ribbon generally will be adequately set if its core temperatureis dropped to about 120° F. or below, e.g., within the range of about90° to 110° F. Usually this requires no more than about 10 minutes inthe super cold brine. The extruded ribbon of cheese may be cut intolengths of about 20 to 26 inches after it is set in the super coldbrine. The chunks of cheese may then be further cooled in the main brinetank, in which the temperature is about 35°-55° F. and the salinity isabout 50-98%.

Whether the cheese is extruded and cut, or it is hand-molded, the largechunks of cheese preferably are left in the main brine tank until theircore temperature drops to about 75° F. or below, e.g., in the range ofabout 55°-75° F. Using the extrusion process and two-step brining, thecheese can be chilled to a core temperature at or below 75° F. withinabout three hours.

It has been found that a core temperature of about 75° F. or below isdesired to comminute the loaves of salted cheese into granules.Temperatures in excess of 75° F. often result in a cheese in which freemoisture and liquid milkfat are present. When comminuted, theseingredients are not fully retained in the cheese granules. Additionally,cheese above 75° F. tends to stick to the equipment used to cut thecheese. The time required to cool the heated cheese to below 75° F. canbe reduced by decreasing the thickness of the cheese and/or by loweringthe brine temperatures used.

For use as a pizza topping, the cheese preferably is comminuted into afinal size in which the center, or core, of each piece is no more thanabout 1/8" from the surface, and most preferably not more than 1/16"from the surface.

Preferably the final size pieces of cheese are subjected to independentquick freezing immediately after comminuting, to form an easy flowing,frozen product. The freezing preferably is conducted in a fluidized bedfreezer, using cold air, e.g., at a temperature of about -20 to -40° F.

The amount of cheese present in the freezer at any one time preferablywill be small enough that each piece of cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about -10° F. within no more than about 5 to 7 minutesafter it enters the freezer. Preferably the cheese pieces ultimatelywill be frozen to a core temperature below about -10° F., e.g., in therange of about -10° to -25° F., before being removed from the freezer.

The quick freezing step preferably is conducted in such a way as not toallow the cheese moisture content to drop any substantial amount, e.g.,so as not to lose more than about one percent of its weight due tomoisture evaporation.

As the frozen pieces of cheese leave the freezer, they may, if desired,be coated with a flavoring additive and/or one or more other cheesechemicals, e.g., an emulsifier such as sodium citrate and/or asurfactant such as a dimethyl polysiloxane.

The preferred manner of applying any flavoring agent, emulsifier, orsurfactant to the cheese pieces is by spraying an aqueous solution oremulsion of the additives on the frozen pieces of cheese, while tumblingthe pieces in order to coat them uniformly. The various additives can beapplied either together or from separate solutions. The solutionconcentration and rate of coating application preferably will beadjusted so as to apply about 10 to 2000 ppm of the flavoring agent,about 10 to 2500 ppm of the emulsifier, and about 1 to 10 ppm of thesurfactant (all based on the weight of the cheese) and to coat thecheese with about 0.5 to 4% of water (also based on the weight of thecheese). The cheese and the water should both be cold enough that thespray forms an icy coating on the cheese pieces practicallyinstantaneously.

EXAMPLE 1

Part-skim mozzarella cheese curd was manufactured using theovernight-curd-hold system described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,961,077 toKielsmeier. A starter culture containing lactobacillus and streptococcusorganisms was used, and the cheese milk was coagulated by the additionof veal rennet. The composition of the curd was controlled to obtain afinal cheese product having a moisture content greater than 52% and amilkfat content greater than 18%--thus a total moisture/milkfat contentgreater than 70%.

The cheese curd was held overnight, after which the fermentation wascomplete. FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a schematicrepresentation of the process from this point on. Referring to FIG. 1,the fermented curd (not shown) was then heated in Mixer/Molder 10° to140° F., while being kneaded and stretched, with 1.5% salt (sodiumchloride) (not shown) added. After about five to seven minutes ofmixing, the molten cheese was extruded into Pre-Brine Tank 11 in theform of a 4"×7" continuous ribbon 12, following the method described inU.S. Pat. No. 4,339,468 to Kielsmeier. The extruded ribbon floweddirectly into the "super cold" sodium chloride brine, which was at 10°F. and had a 60% salinity level. The dwell time of the ribbon in thebrine was 8 minutes, at which time the 4"×7" ribbon was lifted out oftank 11 and severed by Cutter 13 into 20-inch lengths 14. The cheese'score temperature at the time of this cutting was 120° F. The cooled,salted, 4"×7"×20" loaves 14 were then allowed to float in the Main BrineTank 15 for 3 hours. The temperature of the brine in tank 15 was 45° F.,and it had a 95% salinity. The core temperature of the cheese, whenremoved from the Main Brine Tank, was 65° F.

The cooled part-skim mozzarella cheese was then carried by Conveyor 16to Cuber 17, where the cheese was immediately cubed into 2"×2"×3" chunks18. The chunks were immediately conveyed to Dicer 19, where they werecomminuted into 1/8"×1/8"×1/8" cheese granules 20. The granules wereimmediately conveyed to I.Q.F. Freezer 21, which was a FrigoscandiaModel 300 Flo-Freeze fluidized bed freezer like that described in U.S.Pat. No. 4,753,815. After freezing, the core temperature of the cheese22 was -20° F. The cheese was then packaged and held for furtherevaluation in a freezer (not shown) maintained at 0° F.

To serve as a control, additional part-skim mozzarella cheese, which wasnot adjusted so as to obtain a combined moisture and milkfat contentgreater than 70%, was manufactured, comminuted, frozen, and packaged bythe same process. This cheese will be hereinafter referred to as Control1A. In conjunction with this, a portion of this non-adjusted part-skimmozzarella cheese was not comminuted immediately after cooling, butinstead was packaged in loaf form, placed in a cooler, maintained at 38°F. for nine days, and then was comminuted, frozen, packaged, and held at0° F. for further evaluation. This cheese hereafter will be referred toas Control 1B.

The product of this invention and the two controls were then placed inthe same cooler (maintained at 38° F.) and held there until all threeproducts reached an equilibrated temperature of 38° F. Once the productswere equilibrated, each was evaluated for composition, apparent heatcapacity, and melt performance. The compositions and apparent heatcapacity of these products were as follows:

                  TABLE 1                                                         ______________________________________                                                  Invention                                                                     Example  Control 1A                                                                              Control 1B                                       ______________________________________                                        Moisture:   53.5%      52.1%     52.1%                                        Wetfat:     18.5%      17.5%     17.5%                                        Total H.sub.2 O                                                                           72.0%      69.6%     69.6%                                        and wetfat:                                                                   Apparent heat                                                                             -809.9     -593      -492                                         capacity,                                                                     joules/gram:                                                                  ______________________________________                                    

The cheeses' apparent heat capacity (also sometimes referred to as "heatindex value") was measured by use of a Differential Scanning Calorimetermanufactured by Shimadzu Scientific Instruments, Inc., of Columbia, Md.The values refer to the amount of energy (in joules) required to fullymelt one gram of the cheese, when heated from a room temperaturestarting point (approximately 21° C.). This energy is consideredabsorbed prior to the cheese's undergoing its phase change; therefore,it is reported as a negative value. The lower the number (i.e., the morenegative it is), the greater the cheese's apparent heat capacity.

As shown in Table 1 the cheese produced by the process of the presentinvention exhibited a larger heat capacity than that of either control.Often the conditions and ingredients used in preparing cheese by theprocess of the present invention will result in the cheese having anapparent heat capacity at or below -675 joules per gram.

The melt performance of the three products was determined by cooking 11ounces of cheese on a 13 inch (diameter) pizza (consisting of 11 ouncesof unbaked dough and four ounces of tomato sauce) in a Middleby Marshall360S oven for 61/2 minutes at 530° F. This is a time and temperaturecombination that is commonly used to bake a pizza of this size, made ofthis particular dough and tomato sauce. Once cooked, each finished pizzawas photographed and the cooked cheese was evaluated for the percentageand size of blisters, meltdown, stretch, and tenderness. Reproductionsof the photographs constitute FIGS. 2-4 of the drawings accompanyingthis specification. The following observations were made with respect tothe performance of the three products:

Control 1A (less than 70% combined H₂ O and fat, not aged):

As seen in FIG. 2, there was a high degree of blister coverage, with thesize of the blisters formed ranging from small (i.e., "point") blistersto larger scabs. The surface of the product was very dry, with noapparent milkfat being present. This is unacceptable melt performance.

Control 1B (less than 70% combined H₂ O and fat, aged 9 days):

As seen in FIG. 3, there was a lesser degree of blister coverage thanwith Control 1A. Only point blisters were present on this pizza. Thesurface of the product was moist, with the presence of milkfat beingvisually apparent. This is acceptable melt performance, as would beexpected for a part-skim mozzarella aged nine days at 38° F.

Invention Example:

As seen in FIG. 4, here, too, there was a low percentage of blistercoverage and what blisters there were were point blisters. The productsurface was moist in appearance, with milkfat obviously being present.This is comparable melt performance to that of Control 1B. This cheeseand the cheese of Control 1B also were comparable and acceptable interms of flavor, mouth feel, and stretch characteristics.

EXAMPLE 2

More cheese was made following the same procedure as in Example 1, butwith varying moisture and milkfat levels. In all, 19 batches were made,ranging in combined moisture and milkfat content from a low of 68.2% toa high of 77.48%. None of the cheese was aged, and it was all diced into1/8" cubes and frozen by the IQF method disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.4,753,815 immediately upon leaving the secondary brine tank.

The heat capacity of each of these cheeses was measured by the sameprocedure as described in Example 1. The melt performance was measuredas well, by using a sample of each cheese to prepare a 13 inch pizzaunder the same conditions as in Example 1. Each cheese was graded usingthe following scale:

    ______________________________________                                        Melt                                                                          Performance                                                                   Grades      Meanings                                                          ______________________________________                                        From 1 to 2 Slight blister coverage (approximately                                        10-25% of the surface area)                                       From 2 to 3 Moderate blister coverage (approximately                                      25-50% of the surface area)                                       From 3 to 4 Substantial blister coverage (approxi-                                        mately 50-75% of the surface area)                                ______________________________________                                    

The scores were assigned in half-grade increments. The scoring was done"blind"--i.e., without the scorer knowing which cheese had been used.The results are reported in Table 2. The cheeses are listed in the tableaccording to their heat capacities, in declining order (except for theaged control, which is listed last).

                  TABLE 2                                                         ______________________________________                                                                        Heat                                          Lot     Moisture Milkfat Total  Capacity Melt                                 No.     (%)      (%)     (%)    (j/gm)   Grade                                ______________________________________                                        209122  52.26    24      76.26  -1455.7  2.0                                  109122  53.98    23.5    77.48  -1328.8  1.5                                  109131  54.57    20.25   74.87  -932.1   2.0                                  209312  53.72    16.5    70.22  -867.1   2.0                                  109702  53.56    18.5    72.06  -809.9   2.0                                  109312  52.96    16      68.96  -761.5   3.0                                  109031  52.75    16.75   69.50  -661.3   2.5                                  1987221 53.97    15      68.97  -609.1   2.5                                  209031  53.42    16.25   69.67  -597.2   2.0                                  209301  52.08    17.5    69.58  -593.4   2.5                                  109111  50.2     24      74.02  -573.8   1.0                                  109602  52.96    17      69.96  -570.1   2.5                                  2987221 54.39    16.25   70.64  -516.3   2.0                                  209702  52.7     19.0    71.1   -463.6   3.0                                  209011  48.7     19.5    68.2   -379     3.5                                  209111  49.1     23.3    72.4   -328.8   1.0                                  109011  48.8     19.5    68.3   -322.2   3.5                                  209602  54.05    15.5    69.55  -284.2   2.5                                  Control 52.1     17.5    69.6   -492     2.0                                  (Lot 10931,                                                                   Aged 9                                                                        days)                                                                         ______________________________________                                    

As can be seen from the above table, nine of the cheeses had combinedmoisture and milkfat contents of 70% or more, nine had combined contentsof less than 70%, and the nineteenth batch was the conventionally agedcontrol. Of the nine unaged batches with a fat-and-moisture contentabove 70%, all but one had excellent Melt Performance Grades--i.e., inthe range of 1 to 2. But of the nine unaged batches with afat-and-moisture content below 70%, only one had a Melt PerformanceGrade in the range of 1 to 2; five scored a generally unacceptable 2.5,one scored 3, and two scored an extremely poor 3.5.

The data in Table 2 were plotted in order to prepare a graph (FIG. 5 ofthe accompanying drawings) of total moisture-and-milkfat content versusheat capacity. A regression analysis was performed on the data. Itshowed a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.84. The higher themoisture-and-milkfat content, the greater was the cheese's heatcapacity. This is generally considered by biostatisticians to representa good correlation.

The data in Table 2 also were used to plot a graph of melt performanceversus combined moisture-and-milkfat content (FIG. 6 of the accompanyingdrawings). Melt Performance Grades in the range of 1 to 2 are generallyconsidered acceptable. A Grade of 2.5 or higher is generally consideredto represent unacceptable blister coverage. As already mentioned, withthe exception of one product, Melt Performance Grades of 1 to 2 wereuniformly achieved when the combined moisture-and-milkfat content wasequal to, or greater than, 70 weight percent. All but one of the unagedproducts containing a combined moisture-and-milkfat content below 70percent had unacceptable Melt Performance Grades--i.e., Grades higherthan 2.

We claim:
 1. In a process of manufacturing a mozzarella variety ofcheese comprising the following steps:a) pasteurizing cow's milk havinga fat content in the range of about 1.5 to 3.5 weight percent; b)fermenting the milk with one or more lactic acid-producing bacteria toobtain a cheese milk; c) coagulating the cheese milk to obtain acoagulum comprised of curd and whey; d) cutting the coagulum anddraining the whey therefrom, thereby leaving a cheese curd; e) heating,kneading, and stretching the cheese curd until it is a homogeneous,fibrous mass of heated, unripened mozzarella variety cheese having amoisture content in the range of about 45 to 60 weight percent and amilkfat content of at least about 30 weight percent (dried solidsbasis); f) cooling the heated cheese in cold brine; and g) removing thecooled cheese from the brine; the improvement wherein (i) said steps (a)through (g) are controlled so that the cooled cheese removed from thebrine has a combined moisture and wet milkfat content of at least about70 weight percent, and (ii) said cheese is frozen within about 48 hoursafter being removed from the brine, thereby obtaining a mozzarellavariety cheese that can be satisfactorily baked on a pizza withouthaving to first be held in an unfrozen state at about 35° to 45° F. forapproximately 7 to 21 days.
 2. The process of claim 1 wherein, duringstep (e), there is mixed into the cheese curd about 0.5 to 1.5 percentsodium chloride (based on the weight of the cheese curd).
 3. The processof claim 2 wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brine has amoisture content in the range of about 50 to 60 weight percent and a wetmilkfat content in the range of about 16 to 30 weight percent.
 4. Theprocess of claim 3 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheese isboth comminuted and frozen within about 48 hours after being removedfrom the brine.
 5. The process of claim 4 wherein, in step (e), thecheese curd is heated to a temperature in the range of about 125° to155° F.; in step (f) the unripened mozzarella cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about 55° to 75° F.; and the cooled cheese is comminutedprior to being frozen.
 6. The process of claim 5 wherein the particlesof comminuted cheese are independently quick frozen.
 7. The process ofclaim 4 wherein the particles of comminuted cheese are independentlyquick frozen.
 8. The process of claim 3 wherein the cooled cheese isfrozen within about 2 hours after being removed from the brine.
 9. Theprocess of claim 3 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheese iscomminuted and then independently quick frozen, all within about 2 hoursafter being removed from the brine.
 10. The process of claim 3 wherein,in step (f), the heated cheese first is partially cooled in a firstsodium chloride brine having a salinity of about 30 to 60 weight percentand a temperature of about 0° to 25° F., wherein it is held until thecheese's core temperature drops to about 100° F. or below, followingwhich the partially cooled cheese is further cooled in a second sodiumchloride brine having a salinity of about 50 to 98 weight percent and atemperature of about 35° to 55° F., wherein it is held until the coretemperature of the cheese drops to about 75° F. or below.
 11. Theprocess of claim 10 wherein, in step (f), the heated cheese is extrudedas a continuous ribbon into said first brine, and wherein said ribbon iscut into sections prior to being withdrawn from said second brine. 12.The process of claim 11 wherein the cooled sections of cheese from step(g) are comminuted and then independently quick frozen.
 13. The processof claim 11 wherein the cooled sections of cheese from step (g) arecomminuted and then independently quick frozen, all within about 2 hoursafter being removed from said second brine.
 14. The process of claim 13wherein the sections of cheese are held in said second brine until theircore temperature drops to within the range of about 55° to 75° F. 15.The process of claim 14 wherein, in step (e), the cheese curd is heatedto a temperature in the range of about 125° to 155° F.
 16. The processof claim 15 wherein, during step (e), there is mixed into the cheesecurd about 0.8 to 1.5 percent sodium chloride (based on the weight ofthe cheese curd).
 17. The process of claim 16 wherein the cooled cheeseremoved from the brine has a moisture content of at least about 52weight percent and a wet milkfat content of at least about 18 weightpercent.
 18. The process of claim 17 wherein the cooled cheese removedfrom the brine has a heat index value at or below about -675 joules pergram.
 19. The process of claim 16 wherein the cooled cheese removed fromthe brine has a moisture content in the range of about 52 to 60 weightpercent and a wet milkfat content in the range of about 20 to 30 weightpercent.
 20. The process of claim 11 wherein, in step (e), the cheesecurd is heated to a temperature in the range of about 125° to 155° F.21. The process of claim 20 wherein, during step (e), there is mixedinto the cheese curd about 0.8 to 1.5 percent sodium chloride (based onthe weight of the cheese curd).
 22. The process of claim 21 wherein thecooled cheese removed from the brine has a moisture content of at leastabout 52 weight percent and a wet milkfat content of at least about 18weight percent.
 23. The process of claim 20 wherein the cooled cheeseremoved from the brine has a moisture content of at least about 52weight percent and a wet milkfat content of at least about 18 weightpercent.
 24. The process of claim 23 wherein the cooled cheese removedfrom the brine has a heat index value at or below about -675 joules pergram.
 25. The process of claim 3 wherein the cooled cheese removed fromthe brine has a moisture content of at least about 52 weight percent anda wet milkfat content of at least about 18 weight percent.
 26. Theprocess of claim 25 wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brine hasa heat index value at or below about -675 joules per gram.
 27. Theprocess of claim 3 wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brine hasa heat index value at or below about -675 joules per gram.
 28. Theprocess of claim 2 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheese isboth comminuted and frozen within about 48 hours after being removedfrom the brine.
 29. The process of claim 28 wherein, in step (e), thecheese curd is heated to a temperature in the range of about 125° to155° F.; in step (f) the unripened mozzarella cheese is cooled to a coretemperature of about 55° to 75° F.; and the cooled cheese is comminutedprior to being frozen.
 30. The process of claim 29 wherein the particlesof comminuted cheese are independently quick frozen.
 31. The process ofclaim 28 wherein the particles of comminuted cheese are independentlyquick frozen.
 32. The process of claim 2 wherein the cooled cheese isfrozen within about 2 hours after being removed from the brine.
 33. Theprocess of claim 2 wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brine hasa moisture content in the range of about 52 to 60 weight percent and awet milkfat content in the range of about 20 to 30 weight percent. 34.The process of claim 1 wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brinehas a moisture content in the range of about 50 to 60 weight percent anda wet milkfat content in the range of about 16 to 30 weight percent. 35.The process of claim 34 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to acore temperature of about 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheeseis both comminuted and frozen within about 48 hours after being removedfrom the brine.
 36. The process of claim 35 wherein the particles ofcomminuted cheese are independently quick frozen.
 37. The process ofclaim 34 wherein the cooled cheese is frozen within about 2 hours afterbeing removed from the brine.
 38. The process of claim 1 wherein, instep (f), the cheese is cooled to a core temperature of about 75° F. orbelow, and wherein the cooled cheese is both comminuted and frozenwithin about 48 hours after being removed from the brine.
 39. Theprocess of claim 38 wherein the particles of comminuted cheese areindependently quick frozen.
 40. The process of claim 38 wherein, in step(e), the cheese curd is heated to a temperature in the range of about125° to 155° F.
 41. The process of claim 40 wherein, during step (e),there is mixed into the cheese curd about 0.8 to 1.5 percent sodiumchloride (based on the weight of the cheese curd).
 42. The process ofclaim 41 wherein the cooled cheese removed form the brine has a moisturecontent of at least about 52 weight percent and a wet milkfat content ofat least about 18 weight percent.
 43. The process of claim 1 wherein thecooled cheese is frozen within about 2 hours after being removed. 44.The process of claim 1 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to acore temperature of about 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheeseis comminuted and then independently quick frozen, all within about 2hours after being removed from the brine.
 45. The process of claim 1wherein, during step (e), there is mixed into the cheese curd about 0.8to 1.5 percent sodium chloride (based on the weight of the cheese curd).46. The process of claim 1 wherein, in step (f), the heated cheese iscooled by being extruded as a continuous ribbon into cold sodiumchloride brine and the cheese ribbon is held in cold sodium chloridebrine until its core temperature drops to about 75° F. or below, andwherein the cooled ribbon is cut into sections and, prior to freezing,the sections of cooled cheese are comminuted, and wherein, in step (h),the cheese is quick frozen.
 47. A process of making a mozzarella varietyof cheese and using it to make a baked pizza, comprising the steps of:a)pasteurizing cow's milk having a fat content in the range of about 1.5to 3.5 weight percent; b) fermenting the milk with one or more lacticacid-producing bacteria to obtain a cheese milk; c) coagulating thecheese milk to obtain a coagulum comprised of curd and whey; d) cuttingthe coagulum and draining the whey therefrom, thereby leaving a cheesecurd; e) heating, kneading, and stretching the cheese curd until it is ahomogeneous, fibrous mass of heated, unripened mozzarella variety cheesehaving a moisture content in the range of about 45 to 60 weight percentand a milkfat content of at least about 30 weight percent (dried solidsbasis); f) cooling the heated cheese in cold brine; g) removing thecooled cheese from the brine, said steps (a) through (g) beingcontrolled so that the cooled cheese removed from the brine has acombined moisture and wet milkfat content of at least about 70 weightpercent; h) freezing said cheese within about 48 hours after removing itfrom the brine, thereby obtaining a mozzarella variety cheese that canbe satisfactorily baked on a pizza without having to first be held in anunfrozen state at about 35° to 45° F. for approximately 7 to 21 days; i)comminuting said cheese either before or after said step (h); j)spreading tomato sauce and said comminuted cheese on a base of pizzacrust, with or without other toppings; and k) baking the coated crust inan oven maintained at a temperature in the range of about 400° to 1000°F. until said cheese is melted.
 48. The process of claim 47 wherein thecooled cheese removed from the brine in step (g) has a moisture contentin the range of about 50 to 60 weight percent and a wet milkfat contentin the range of about 16 to 30 weight percent.
 49. The process of claim48 wherein, in step (f), the cheese is cooled to a core temperature ofabout 75° F. or below, and wherein the cooled cheese is comminutedbefore said step (h), the cheese being both comminuted and frozen withinabout 48 hours after being removed from the brine.
 50. The process ofclaim 49 wherein, in step (h), the particles of comminuted cheese areindependently quick frozen.
 51. The process of claim 49 wherein thecheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days prior to placing thecoated crust in the oven.
 52. The process of claim 49 wherein, betweenthe time when the cheese is removed from the brine and the time when thecoated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has not been held in anunfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 53. The process of claim 49wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 days prior toplacing the coated crust in the oven.
 54. The process of claim 48wherein the cooled cheese is frozen within about 2 hours after beingremoved from the brine.
 55. The process of claim 48 wherein, in step(f), the heated cheese is cooled by being extruded as a continuousribbon into cold sodium chloride brine and the cheese ribbon is held incold sodium chloride brine until its core temperature drops to about 75°F. or below, and wherein the cooled ribbon is cut into sections and,prior to step (h), the sections of cooled cheese are comminuted, andwherein, in step (h), the cheese is quick frozen.
 56. The process ofclaim 55 wherein the sections of cheese are held in said sodium chloridebrine until their core temperature drops to within the range of about55° to 75° F. and wherein in step (e), the cheese curd is heated to atemperature in the range of about 125° to 155° F., and wherein the quickfreezing of step (h) is performed within about 2 hours after said step(g).
 57. The process of claim 56 wherein, during step (e), there ismixed into the cheese curd about 0.8 to 1.5 percent sodium chloride(based on the weight of the cheese curd), and wherein, in step (h), thecheese is independently quick frozen.
 58. The process of claim 57wherein the cooled cheese removed from the brine has a moisture contentof at least about 52 weight percent and a wet milkfat content of atleast about 18 weight percent.
 59. The process of claim 58 wherein thecooled cheese removed from the brine has a heat index value at or belowabout -675 joules per gram.
 60. The process of claim 59 wherein thecheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days prior to placing thecoated crust in the oven.
 61. The process of claim 59 wherein, betweenthe time when the cheese is removed from the brine and the time when thecoated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has not been held in anunfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 62. The process of claim 59wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 days prior toplacing the coated crust in the oven.
 63. The process of claim 58wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days prior toplacing the coated crust in the oven.
 64. The process of claim 58wherein, between the time when the cheese is removed from the brine andthe time when the coated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has notbeen held in an unfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 65. The process ofclaim 58 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 daysprior to placing the coated crust in the oven.
 66. The process of claim56 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days priorto placing the coated crust in the oven.
 67. The process of claim 56wherein, between the time when the cheese is removed from the brine andthe time when the coated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has notbeen held in an unfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 68. The process ofclaim 56 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 daysprior to placing the coated crust in the oven.
 69. The process of claim55 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days priorto placing the coated crust in the oven.
 70. The process of claim 55wherein, between the time when the cheese is removed from the brine andthe time when the coated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has notbeen held in an unfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 71. The process ofclaim 55 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 daysprior to placing the coated crust in the oven.
 72. The process of claim47 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 14 days priorto placing the coated crust in the oven.
 73. The process of claim 47wherein, between the time when the cheese is removed from the brine andthe time when the coated crust is put in the oven, the cheese has notbeen held in an unfrozen state for as long as 7 days.
 74. The process ofclaim 47 wherein the cheese has been kept frozen at least until 2 daysprior to placing the coated crust in the oven.